Inflatable device for use in surgical protocol relating to fixation of bone

Abstract

A balloon for use in compressing cancellous bone and marrow (also known as medullary bone or trabecular bone). The balloon comprises an inflatable balloon body for insertion into said bone. The body has a shape and size to compress at least a portion of the cancellous bone to form a cavity in the cancellous bone and/or to restore the original position of the outer cortical bone, if fractured or collapsed. The balloon desirably incorporates restraints which inhibit the balloon from applying excessive pressure to various regions of the cortical bone. The wall or walls of the balloon are such that proper inflation of the balloon body is achieved to provide for optimum compression of the bone marrow. The balloon can be inserted quickly into a bone. The balloon can be made to have a suction catheter. The balloon can be used to form and/or enlarge a cavity or passage in a bone, especially in, but not limited to, vertebral bodies. Various additional embodiments facilitate directionally biasing the inflation of the balloon.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method comprising
 providing a system comprising a void creation device capable of being inserted through a percutaneous access path into a bone having cortical walls which enclose a cancellous bone volume, the void creation device including an expandable structure and including a first expandable region capable of expanding in the cancellous bone volume to compact a first region of the cancellous bone volume to form a first void, and a second expandable region spaced from the first expandable region and capable of expanding in the cancellous bone volume substantially independently of the first expandable region to compact a second region of the cancellous bone volume different than the first region of the cancellous bone volume to form a second void, and an expansion controller coupled to the expandable structure being capable of selective operation in a first condition to expand the first expandable region without substantially expanding the second expandable region and in a second condition to expand the second expandable region without substantially expanding the first expandable region, 
 inserting the void creation device into a bone through a percutaneous access path, and 
 operating the expansion controller to form at least one void in cancellous bone within the bone. 
 
     
     
       2. A method according to  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the expandable regions includes an internal restraints which allows for directional expansion of the respective expandable region. 
     
     
       3. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein the expansion controller is further capable of operation in a third condition to expand both the first and second expandable regions substantially simultaneously. 
 
     
     
       4. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein the expansion controller is capable of selectively collapsing the first expandable region without substantially collapsing the second expandable region, and vice versa. 
 
     
     
       5. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein the expansion controller is capable of selectively collapsing both the first expandable region and the second expandable region substantially simultaneously. 
 
     
     
       6. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein the bone comprises a vertebral body. 
 
     
     
       7. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein at least one of the first and second expandable regions comprises an inflatable body. 
 
     
     
       8. A method according to  claim 7 
 wherein the expansion controller includes a valve controlling conveyance of an inflation medium to the inflatable body. 
 
     
     
       9. A method according to  claim 1 
 wherein the expandable structure is elongated along an axis and includes proximal and distal end spaced apart along the axis, the first expandable region being located near the proximal end and the second expandable region being located near the distal end. 
 
     
     
       10. A method according to  claim 9 
 wherein the expandable structure includes an intermediate section between the proximal and distal ends that does not significantly expand during expansion of the first and/or second expandable regions. 
 
     
     
       11. A method according to  claim 10 
 wherein the first and second expandable regions, when substantially expanded, comprise lobes. 
 
     
     
       12. A method according to  claim 1 
 further including placing a volume of filling material into the void. 
 
     
     
       13. A method according to  claim 12 
 wherein the filling material hardens within the void.